She gnashed her teeth and shrieked in frustration, hands slipping into her jaws and prying her teeth open as they shoveled that disgusting pink slop into her mouth. No! No! No! She gagged and coughed trying to do anything not to swallow the custard. Tinky just hissed and shoved his fingers past her lips, she struggled against Dipsy's grip but the green one held tight. She started to sob in desperation as she was forced to suck on the custard coated fingers.
Tinky stood at the end of the line with Laa-Laa and Po as the young ones awaited their daily work assignments.
Varn was at the front of the line, he was a young grey telle who would be a member of the council once he came of age, due to his intellect and charismatic charm. After him there was Tula, she was proactive and playful, farmer in training.
Stone and Feather were best friends, Stone had lost his eyes in an attack from the Mountain Teles. But he made up for it with his strength and sheer size, Feather was ambitious but a bit of a dreamer, she liked to collect strange objects such as shiny pebbles or bird feathers. They worked together best as scouts.
Which also Tinky's occupation, being a capable young male who was near full maturity. His nest-mate Dipsy often tagged along just for something to do…. Wait a minute! Where was Dipsy? God if he had slept in again!
He groaned inwardly realizing that his friend was going to get them both a tardy again. Tinky would hit him for this later. Laa-Laa giggled and took hold of Tinky's arm cuddling close as the cold dawn breeze made them all shiver.
"He's very late." She whispered.
Laa-Laa was by personality standards, most grown up. She often fussed over her friends, constantly making sure they were safe and clean. It was because of this trait she was given the role of babysitting the cubs. She had a strange beauty about her too, something that most of the girls didn't have. Tinky thought it must have been something to do with her high cheek bones or unusual green eyes.
Po smirked and gave a small chuckle. She was fierce little thing, but hoped for more than she was capable of. Desperately she wanted to be part of the scouting but she was too little, being a runt, the elders thought it was better if she was under the practice of farming instead of something so dangerous.
"I could beat him out of bed for you?" She asked hopefully, wanting something fun to do. Tinky laughed at the thought but shook his head and gently boxed the little one's ears.
"No, if he wants be stuck on compost duty then let him be late".
One of the elders addressed the group of yearlings. Giving them their instructions.
They lived, played and worked in the fields. Made their houses out of mud, each home consisted of two rooms, one for eating and one for sleeping. The homes were more or less communal, friends often nesting together. Unless they found a partner, then they would build their own home, one where they could have cubs. When cubs became younglings, they left their parents and nested with friends. The layout of the village was a circle, houses were built close together, in a way it was almost like a large maze. Filled with long alleyways, sharp turns and dead ends. If you unfamiliar with it you could easily get lost.
Beyond the village were the fields. One half of the year filled with long grass you couldn't even see over, the other half of the year if was covered with flowers and fruits which was what they ate. In the middle of the fields was a large lake that flowed down from the deep dark forest which was at the South of the fields. The forest was a rather dangerous place, filled with beasts the size of a mud house! No one went into the forest, even the plants wanted to eat you.
At the North however were large numerous mountains, rocky at the base but the further up you got the more colder it became. Eventually at the halfway point it was constantly snowing up there. For generations the elders told the cubs legends and stories of the mountains, making sure they new never to go there for that was where the Mountain Teles lived. Their larger cousins were not like the field teles, they towered over them in height and were far stronger. The Mountains were not social like the Fields, preferring the stay alone rather than live in large colonies. If they did live in a group it would be a small group, most likely of three or four.
They told the cubs that if the Mountain Tele caught you they'd cook you in a pot of stew and eat you whole. So it was safe to say that no one went into the mountains.
Tinky took arms with spear and shield not waiting for his lazy friend left for patrols of mountain boarders.
Po sighed in disappointment. Sulking as she followed Tula into the fields, it wasn't fare! She was a lot more capable then anyone else in the village! Why should she be stuck as a farmer just because of her size? Honestly Po could take a beastie. She could! She knew she could….
But nether the less she began to pack the basket with fruits and flowers. This was a chore that only needed doing once a week, there were enough farmers to collect enough for everyone. But see, they didn't eat the food fresh from the fields. Once harvested it was sorted between all the houses where it would be ground up, mixed together with water and left in the sun for a few hours. After a while the mixture would become sticky and thick, the type of stuff that stuck to your fingers and was a pain to wash off.
"Don't look glum." Po's fur bristled as she glared at Tula, it wasn't anyone else's business what she was feeling.
"I'll look however I want thank." She shot back folding her arms and looking away from the larger female.
"Listen, it's not your fault your little, but you really do have to understand that at your size you simply can't protect yourself or anyone else from danger. Your too small."
Ouch. The words stung and made Po's heart contract, so she complied with the other females and made herself useful. Fruits and Flowers don't pick themselves after all.
Laa-Laa laughed as warmly as the little cubs played with toys she had brought with her. It was most enjoyable to take care of children. She found their company to be refreshing compared to that of yearlings or adults. They were free, not having to worry about anything, they could be what ever they wanted. Not bound by one life or full of the stresses of keeping up with the life inside the maze village.
The cubs could run as far as they wanted, could lose themselves in their games forget all the troubles of what was really happening in the real word. Laa-laa would sometimes find herself envying them, wishing nothing more than to let herself fade away into her own world the same way they could. Just like she use to….. but that was before, it was unwise to let yourself live in dreams or else you'd be brought back by the harshness of a reality that turns on those who let themselves wonder.
Oh NO! Dipsy raced through the village. He had slept in again! He didn't even have time to eat. Late, late, late. His mind filled with possible excuses most of them too far fetched to be believed. But by the sun he had to give them something other than over sleeping.
This was not good! Why hadn't Laa-laa woken him? Shooting into the auditorium he snatched up a spear and shield. Quick as his feet could carry him he-
"Dipsy." Oh come on. He skidded to a stop, hackles raised and flinched at being caught. Sighing he turned around to face the apprentice who was currently crafting a map.
"Yesss… Varn." Dipsy struggled with the words, he was in trouble. The grey tele didn't even look at him but rather smirked for a second before letting his expression fall back to one of concentration.
"You were late, did you sleep in again? Of course, you did"
Dipsy rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah I'm late ok, now if you excuse me I really gotta go!" He moved for the door.
"You won't be needing those" Varn said blatantly, gesturing to the spear absentmindedly.
"You're assigned for the graves."
"Oh what!?"
"Yes, Yes. Exciting, I am so happy for you but run along now you are disturbing my work"
Dipsy groaned and dropped his weapon leaving it for Varn to pick up as he trudged grumpily to the edge of the village.
She climbed down the rocks with haste, constantly looking over her shoulder. Ears twitched and she crouched down, frozen. Nothing. She continued on her journey, her heart was still racing fast in her chest. Adrenaline fueling her veins. Her fur stood on end, and her pupils closed up. Taking a jump, she landed on a bolder. Tensing she whipped around and stared back the way she came.
A low whaling came from the wind, long and mournful as if crying out the pain she could not voice. Slipping down the boulder she quickly jogged downhill, careful not trip or fall. She was careful never to let body touch the rock unless it captures her scent. The ground was becoming less rocky and more like soil. Her breathing grew ragged, this was not familiar. Who knew what lived here.
She crouched down again and this time she began to move on all fours. She slipped further and further into uncharted territory.
Po hoisted the basket up onto her shoulders and joined the line as they walked back to the village single file. The baskets packed full and some even overflowing. It had been a successful harvest; the fields were rich with flavor. She strained to see above the grass, it had gotten rather tall lately. The girls chatted and gossiped about things that Po would never understand. Who was improving at cooking, who they are nesting with, how annoying it was to have to pick up after the boys. Who they wanted for a partner.
The same old conversations that almost occurred every day, with the occasional refreshment of how big their cubs were getting. Po rolled her eyes, looking to the mountains. She stopped. Her ears twitched and stood on end.
"Quit!" She hissed to the other girls. Their needless chatter silenced and then they heard it too. The sound of something running towards them through the tall grass. Po pushed to the front of the line and unsheathed her claws, fur puffing up. Screaming a battle cry she ran straight into the path of whatever it was meeting it head on.
Only to be knocked flat on her back as whatever it was collided with her. The rest of the girls screamed and a high pitched animalistic shriek brought Po back to her senses and she leapt to her feet. For a moment the little red one was confused.
For there growling and shrieking like a wild animal was a white furred girl. Po gnashed her teeth and hissed, challenging the stranger. The girl met her eyes for a moment.
Before charging forward and shoved Po aside and running fast through the grass.
Tula helped Po to her feet, who tried to ignore the fact she had just been knocked down twice in row.
"She's heading to the village!" One of the girls exclaimed.
Po raced after the wilder thing.
Dipsy quietly stood by the hole in the ground. Blocking out the elder's voice just pretending he was listening. The graves were at the edge of the village, and was the most boring job to be assigned to, at least in Dipsy's point of view anyway. But heck some people might like it, if you liked digging holes all day. He had already fallen in twice and it was before noon. At least none of them were actually occupied yet, that would have been really unfortunate.
A white blur speeded past, just missing him and…. Make that three times.
Po leapt over the grave and Dipsy hastily climbed out.
What the heck was that? Shaking off dirt he joined Po in the chase after the white creature.
It was fast, faster then most of them. Gaining on Po, Dipsy looked to the small red one and she looked right back. They were having a silent conversation, one that was only picked up with eyes and not ears.
It went something like this.
What is it?
It's a Wilder One.
It can't be, It's not big enough.
Well what else could it be!
Fare point.
Dipsy pushed himself ahead attempting to attain ground on the white creature. Cursing inwardly as she disappeared into the Entrance of the Maze Village.
Into the mud houses she ran, hoping to loose her pursuers in the confusion. She took a left turn, right, left, left, right, right, left. The turns appeared so fast that she often knocked into objects which fell and sometimes broke upon impact. Cries of alarm sounded from inside the strange structures, others tried to block her way but she shoved past them or took another direction.
Looking over her shoulder she saw the red and green one still on her tail. Taking a turn she silently screamed as she came to a dead end, not knowing what else to do she climbed up onto a basket and clawed her way onto the roof of a mud house.
Taking a run and jump she leapt onto a second roof. As she leapt to the third a pair of hand grabbed her ankles and she was pulled down, missing the landing as her chest collided with the edge of the roof, a scream of pain left her mouth but was cut off as her chin met the same fate. Now on the ground she quickly wriggled out of her attacker's grip and ran ahead, three of four others had joined in the chase.
She dodged snatching hands and leapt over a wall, landing in a different part of the maze. She whimpered stressfully, she had to get out of hear. Knowing full well she couldn't keep this up forever. She had to hide. Running aimlessly until she saw the biggest building in the village. In through the window she looked around frantically for a moment, the sound of others got closer and so she ran up the stairs, passing several different floors. As she reached the roof she went to escape but collided with another body.
They both scrambled to their feet and for a moment stared at each other. She flattened her ears and her fur stood on end, Ebat slowly raised his hands in a non threatening manor and took a careful step back. Footsteps running up the stairs made her panic.
She ran past the grey tele and to the edge of the roof. A group of scouts stopped a few meters in front of her. She was cornered. Taking a breath, she took a step backwards.
Varn and the scouts rushed forward, a fall at that height would kill her! A screech of outrage echoed off the walls.
Stone had caught the wild thing before she could hit the ground. She struggled in his grip, trying to scratch and bite but he held her at arms length, remaining silent despite the damage to his arms.
Tinky scratched the back of his head as he strolled back into the village, ready to turn in his weapons and spend the rest of his day doing recreational activates now that his shift was over. But before he could even reach the Auditorium he stopped in his tracks at the sight of the scouts carrying a screaming and struggling girl through the village.
Po and Dipsy approached him looking quite out of breath. Looking back and forth between the girl and his friends he instead just rooted for looking to the sky with a befuddled expression.
"What happened while I was gone?"
"Nothing. We've just been protecting the village, what about you? Sleeping under a tree?" challenged Po.